I’ll use this thread to confirm/share some battery related issues. All in all, the battery life and indicator are very erratic at best. I’ve the 8GB Clip+, which I’m using in MSC mode, and I’ve fully charged and then emptied it a couple of times. At a full charge, I’ve managed to get the following battery life lengths in the course of my testing:
Full brightness, screen on all the time, volume set to “Loud” and at maximum setting, an mp3 continuously looping: ~5 hours. (Nothing surprising here.)
Screen off all the time (and brightness set to minimum, to be sure), volume at “Normal” and at the most silent setting +1 (so that you can hear something), an mp3 continuously looping: ~10 hours and a couple of minutes.
Also, the battery life indicator does indeed tend to drop from 30-40% to “Low battery” and shutting down, even after charging for over 5 hours.
Another curious thing: The player was fully charged and attached to the computer overnight. In the morning, the battery life indicator showed 52% and the player started charging after re-plugging it. (Though this could be related to the charging icon indicator bug, which has been confirmed in this thread earlier.)
How common are these symptoms, and do you think they can/will be fixed with a firmware update, or should I try to RMA the player? I don’t like unreliability in a portable music player, even though the Clip+ is awesome otherwise. Judging by other people’s experiences, the 15 hour battery life claim also seems to be kind of optimistic in every scenario I can think of.
Thanks!
(System: Intel P45 motherboard chipset with Core 2 Duo, Windows XP Professional SP3, no problem with charging any other USB devices quickly or with the computer turned off.)
I also recently experienced the rapid shutoff at what looked (from the display) like I should have plenty of time left. I had also previously noticed the ‘never shows stable battery when charging’ issue.
These misbehaviors can be somewhat compensated for (remember that it will cutoff sooner than expected, remember to check batter level via device properties) – but it’s annoying to have to think like that.
Hopefully this is something SanDisk *can* fix via firmware, and (if so) hopefully this is something SanDisk *will* fix via firmware…
had a clip+ 4gb for several days and have experienced every single one of the issues mentioned.
battery indicator does not go to full
battery shuts off way sooner than expected
battery loses crazy amount of charge when left off. i had it at 100% charge, kept it off, then 2 days later brought it to the gym i was getting low battery, and within 2 minutes it shut down.
i tried several charge cycles. my drain test (backlight off, low volume) could not even be completed because when i went to check on it after 6 or 7 hours, it had already lost charge and shut off.
given sansa’s very public market positioning as a value brand, there’s no chance i’m holding my breath for these issues to be resolved via firmware, if that’s a possible fix even. since i’ve had such severe issues, i’m wondering if i have an outlying unit, but based on what i’ve read here and elsewhere, there’s nothing outlying about it. it’s just “value”.
The Sansa should not deplete its battery over two days with the unit turned off. I would exchange this unit for a new one at Best Buy. The only running issue should be the charge indicator. Battery management will be addressed in a firmware update.
Regardless of the management issue, your battery should not go dead when off- that’s definitely a bad battery.
I would love to echo the following issue listed by many other forummers. =)
Currently my 4GB Clip+ with a 8GB MicroSDHC will have a significant drop to low battery at around 45%±.
Playback time is always around 6~8 hours, depending on the file type. (FLAC, depending on the bitrate, would usually last slightly above 6 hours to 7 hours, 320kbps mp3 or lower would usually hit around 7.5 to 8 hours at best), which to me, is kinda short.
Just, just perhaps, thinking optimistically, there’s some battery optimisation issues with the current firmware? I love the Clip+ in every way minus the battery life, actually contemplated getting a Fuze to replace the Clip+, though to me, the relative size of the Fuze may appear to be not as convenient as the Clip, as I could simply just clip my Clip+ along my pants, or at the pocket, etc.
ADD: I take that back. I just tested it, and my player only lasted 7 hours, with 192kbps MP3, loudness at 50%, brightness at 40%, screen only turned on 2~3 times during the entire playback process, no EQ. Any advise anyone? Could this be a lemon unit?
Message Edited by Enigmatic on 10-30-2009 01:17 PM
i just bought mine and have charged it for over 15 hours when i disconected it it was dead (no screen), when ihit the powere button nothing. holding on button down 15 seconds did nothing either. when you buy a new product it should work! back to BB for a refund and to walmart for a walkman … if they stoll make those? ;-), hey at least it works !
wow just checked battery status in windows explorer. my 4GB sansa it is after 15 hours charging showing charge at a whopping… 0 percent 0 !! zilch, nada … done with this nonsense dont need another migrain on a saturday morning! get your (you know what together) SANDISK ! ex-buyer of sandisk products ~s thornbrugh bye bye_____
@scottfish wrote:
i just bought mine and have charged it for over 15 hours when i disconected it it was dead (no screen), when ihit the powere button nothing. holding on button down 15 seconds did nothing either. when you buy a new product it should work! back to BB for a refund and to walmart for a walkman … if they stoll make those? ;-), hey at least it works !
@scottfish wrote:
wow just checked battery status in windows explorer. my 4GB sansa it is after 15 hours charging showing charge at a whopping… 0 percent 0 !! zilch, nada … done with this nonsense dont need another migrain on a saturday morning! get your (you know what together) SANDISK ! ex-buyer of sandisk products ~s thornbrugh bye bye_____
Have you considered the possibility that the problem is with your computer, not the Clip+ at all? Many people come here because they have similar charging issues (with all models). If you search around, you’ll discover that many things can affect and/or prevent charging properly.
Back USB ports instead of front ones
Decktop computers instead of laptops
MSC mode instead of MTP mode
Cable not plugged in fully and/or broken or defective cable
just to name a few.
So go ahead and take it back to BB. But if you already decided this was the player that fit your needs (& wants) the best, you might want to give it another chance before you go with another brand. Which, by the way won’t guarantee that you will not have problems with that device as well.
Have you considered the possibility that the problem is with your computer, not the Clip+ at all?
And there is always the possibility that you got a defective unit – but your problem (never charges) isn’t really the same as the more common problems (1. on-screen display doesn’t appear to be finished charging, even though device preferences indicates a 100% charge, and 2. sharp cutoff when the on-screen display indicates a roughly 40% charge left).
I had just fully charged my Clip + and got on an airplane. After about on hour of play time the unit just went dead. I could not get it to reset nothing worked. I tried to use my AC wall charger with the supplied cable and nothing happened I figured it was a return for sure. When I got home I plugged it into my computer USB port just for giggles and lo and behold it turned on and started charging. It looked like the battery was dead but I had just charged it when it locked up previously so I don’t get it. Any ideas what could be the issue here. I am not sure if I need to send it back to Sandisk or not at this point.
I have been away from my iMac for a few weeks. My Clip+ held a perfect charge in my absence. I use the only USB connections available on my Mac, the ones on the back. I could leave it set to charge until hell freezes over, and it never indicates a full charge. It simply cycles through the connected screen and the SanDisk logo. While my SanDisk Cruzer flash drive works flawlessly, the Clip+ is trash. I will not purchase a media player from Sansa again. Even if a update is made to correct this problem, I am not pleased with the product.
On your iMac, are you connecting on a USB2.0 port? The media player requires more drive current than a simple flash drive. USB2.0 specifies 500mA capability.
A handy solution is to simply use a powered USB hub, or an AC USB adaptor.
In a future firmware update, the Clip+ charge indicator will be revised.
… if they stoll make those? ;-), hey at least it works !